Fuel-feeding system



June 24, 1930. w R, HEwlTT 1,767,452

FUEL FEEDING SYSTEM l Filed July 25, 192e 36 i I .57

INVENTOR.l

**** A TT ORNEYS.

Patented June 24, 1930 WILLIAM n. HEwrrr, or NEW YORK. N. Y.

'd FUEL-Famine' SYSTEM 'Application filed July 25, 192s. serial Nb.295,303.

This invention relates to devices for elevating liquids from a low to ahigher level, and is particularly applicable to motor driven vehicles-inwhich the main source of fuel supply is a tank located at a low leveland where the fuel is raised to an auxiliary:

tank positioned at a higher level, in order to feed the fuel by gravityto the carburetor of the motor.

1o In such devices it is desirable to provide an apparatus which willoperate with great` certainty under widely varying conditions of lowthrottle opening and variations of the vacuum by which the device isoperated.V

It is-also desirable'to design the apparatus so that it willhave aminimum number-of moving parts yand that such parts will be rugged andnot affected by road vibrations and the like.

The object of the present invention is to improve and generally simplifyy the 'construction and operation of fuel feeding de-'` vices of thecharacter described, to provide a simple form of valve mechanism wherebya partially evacuated condition is maintained when fuel is beingdelivered to the auxiliary tank and whereby the tank is vented when thefuel is discharging to provide means whereby the rise and fall of thefloat within 39 the tank automatically actuates the valve, and furtherto provide a valve mechanism which is balanced successively both as toatmospheric and vacuum conditions. The fuel feeding device is shown byway of illustration in the accompanying drawings, `in which:

Fig. 1 is a central vertical longitudinal section of the fuel feedingdevice, said view showing the valve in a position where the vacuum isbeing maintained and fuel delivered,

Fig. 2 is a section similar to Fig. 1 but showing the vacuum and fuel`controlling valves closed and the vtank vented to permitdischarge ofthe fuel,

Fig. 3 is a cross section taken on line 3 3 of Fig. 2. 4

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the'valve housing.

Fig. 5 is a .sectiontaken on line 5-5 of Fig. 2.Y

Referring to the drawings in detail, and particularly Figs.` 1 and 2, Aindicatesrin general an auxiliary fuel receiving tank provided with abottom section 2, anda head member 3. Y Supported by the head member isa valve casing generally indicated aty B, and. the lower end of thecasing is provided with a cylindrical extension 4,7which extends througha central opening in the head member` 3 and which is threaded to receivea se y curing and clampingnut 5, said nut serving the function of;securing the casing B with relation to the head of the tank, and

,also maintaining an air tight connection by interposing a packinggasket, as indicated at 6. Extending centrally through the casing is apassage 7 the upper end of which isA closed by means of a cap 8 threadedor otherwise secured therein. This cap is provided with a venting valve9,-which controls the admission `or exclusion of atmospheric air to tankA, as will `hereinafter be described. Y Slidably mounted in the passage7 is an elongated cylindrical shaped plug C in which is formed aplurality of longitudinally extending venting passages 10, thesepassages communicating at one end-withy the interior of the tank and atthe opposite or upper `end with the venting valve 9. Suitably secured'to the lower end of the plug is a valve stem 11. Formed near the upperend` thereof Vis a collar 12, and supported by said collar are a pairofvalves, such as indicated at 13 and 14. Thesevalves are provided withstems such as indicated at 15, which guide themwith relation to thecollar 12, and the lower` end'of'theV valve casing.

Formed in the valve casing are a pair ofV passages, such as indicated at16 and 17, and connected with the respective passages `are pipes 16aand-17, the pipe 16a being connected with theintake manifold of anengine, while the pipe 17a is connected with a source of fuel supplysuch as the manifold tank on amotor vehicle. Valve 14 valigns with thepassage 17,-, while valve 13 aligns with a passage 16. The valves 13 and14 areadapted to intermittently open and close said passages and themanner in which this is accomplished will later be described.

Secured to the bottom section 2 of the tank, and centrally thereof is acasing 18, in which is mounted a check valve generally indicated at D.The upper end of the casing extends into the tank, and it forms a guidefor the lower end of the valve stem 11. r1`he valve stem is providedwith two collars, one indicated at 12, which is formed near the upperend, and a second collar indicated at 19 which is formed near the lowerend. Mounted within the tank and slidable on the valve stem is a floatgenerally indicated at E. This float is annular or ring shaped, asshown, and it is provided with a' disc like bottom section 20, throughwhich the valve stem extends. The Hoat is free to rise and fall withrelation to the valve stem but its movement upwardly or downwardlythereon is limited by the collars 12 and 19. This movementis utilized toraise the plug C Ato `assume the position shown in Fig. 2 whentlie tankis filled withfuel, and finally to lower the plug -to :the positionshown in F 1 when the tank lis substantially emptied.

Formed in one side of the valve casing B is a slot 22, (see Figs. 3 andThis slot communicates with the central rpassage 7. Pivot-ally mountedon the side ofthe valve casing, as at 23 is, a ydead beat lever 2l, theinner end of the lever vbeingfcoimected with a plug C by means :of a pin25, while trie ou'terend'of the lever is attached to a tension spring27. The dead beat'lever and the spring are provided forthe purpose ofimparting aquick movement to the plug C Vat opposite ends of lits stroker`so 'as to quickly openrand close the valves 13 and 1i when suction isto be applied, or the tank is 'to be vented as the case maybe.

In actual operation the float Will normally assume the posi-tion-shownin Fig. 1 when the tank is empty or substantially so, and theplugC will assume its lowermost position and valves 13 and la will be open.If pipe llnlis connected With a Asource of fuel supply and the pipe 16with the intake manifold of a carbureteig a partially evacuatedcondition will be Vmain-tained wit-hin the tank and fuel will beadmit-ted through pipe 17a. As'fuel is admitted float E willv graduallyrise, and as it rises the bottom portion 2() thereof lwill engage thevalve stem guides 30 of the collar 12. The vcollar 12, together with thevalves 13 and 1li ywill `accordingly rise slowly and-upwardly with thedoat as the fuel levelincreases, Iand so will'the valve stem 11 andthe'p'lug C, and a-s the plug C is connected with the vdead beat leverthrough means of pin 25, this will swing about itslpivot 23v untilspring 22s'traightens out. A Yslight further -movement of the float,lthe valve stem Aand the plug willv cause the spring 27 to move overcenter and a pull will then be exerted which will almost instantly swingthe dead beat lever to the opposite end of its stroke. A quick upwardmovement will thus be imparted to the plug, the valve stem and thevalves 13 and 1l actuated thereby and the passages 16 and 17 will beclosed, hence shuttingoff the suction .and also the fuel supply. At thesame time the tank will be vented, as valve 9 will be opened, as shownin Fig. 2 when it is engaged bythe plugC as this reaches the upper endof its stroke. Atmospheric air will accordingly enter by the valve 9 andthe' passages 10 into the tank, and the fuel will accordingly be free todischarge through the check valve D and flow by gravity to thecarbureter.

The reverse operation will take place when the fuel discharges. That is,the float E will gradually settle as the fuel level decreases, and itwill finally engage the lower collar 19 andthereby impart a downwardmovement to the valve stem and .the plug. `Valves 13 and 11- howeverwill now remain seated until sufficient movement has been imparted toswing the dead beat lever over center, when it will pull the' plug andthe valve stem downwardly with a rapid movement. The lower end of theplug will, during this rapid movement, strike the ianges of the valves13 and 14 with a han'nnerlike movement and thus rapidly unseat them,thus the venting valve 9 is at the same time closed -as it is releasedby the plug, and a partially evacuated condition will immediately beestablished, which causes the check valve D to close, and fuel to besupplied by the pipe 17a.

lt should be noted that the moving parts employed are simple and rigidin 'construction, and few in number as the plug C, together with thevalve stem 11, and collars 12 and 19 may be considered one member, andthe valves 9, 13 and 14 the only other movable members. These membersare rigidly secured in both of their positions by the tension of thespring 25, but -their positions are automatically changed by {ioataction. Road vibrations, jolts etc. are not liable to affect theoperation of the mechanism whatsoever.

It should be noted that the lower casing 1S is provided with an enlargeddischarge duct, suchas indicated at 31, and that this is vented by meansof a small standpipe, such as indicated at 32. The standpipe is providedwith -a perforated cap `33, which may be removed if it 'is evernecessary to prime the device.` The enlarged duct 31 serves as a fuelreservoir and it is designed to amplytake care of the fuel supply'to thecarbureter during the period that the tank is refilled. y

It should also be noted that the check valve is pivotally mounted on aremovable plug 34 which is cylindrical in cross `section, as shown at85. This plug has a long seat and is secured in the casing 18 by meansof a screw and nut, such as 'indicated at 36. It is thus rigidly andtightly secured in position to avoid leakage, and it is furthermorerotatable so that the check valve 19 may assume the best angularposition for different operating conditions. That is, -a position whereit will readily open or close when the fuel discharges, and vice versa.

lt should also be noted that the valve casing B is provided with anauxiliary cover or dust cap 37, which is vented as at 38 to admit air tothe valve 9. v This dust cap encloses the valve9, the dead beat leverand the spring 24. It also excludes dust` from these parts and from theslot 22. The dust cover may be secured in any manner desired, but asimple method of securing the same is here disclosed. That is,perforations are formed in opposite endsthrough which the pipe fittingsfor pipes 16 and 17a may be inserted, thus permitting the fittings toalso serve the function of securing the dust cover in place.

While certain features of the present invention are more; or lessspecifically described, I wish it understood that various changes may beresorted to within the scope of the appended claims, similarly that thematerials and finishes of the several parts employed may be such as themanufacturer may decide, or varying conditions or uses may demand.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent is:

, 1. ln a device of the character described, a tank; a valve casingsecured thereto and having a pair of passages formed therein, one beinga fuel delivering passage and the other a suction passage; a fuel and asucf' tion controlling valve,'one Vfor each passage, a venting valve inoneV end of the valve casing; a plug slidably mounted in the valvecasing and having passages formed therein communicating at one end withthe venting valve and at the opposite end with the interior ofthe tank;a spring actuated dead beat lever connected at .one end with the plug; afloat within the tank whereby movement is imparted to the plug and thedead beat lever; and means actuated by the plug whereby the ventingvalve, the suction and the fuel valves are intermittently opened andclosed in unison.

2. ln a device of the character described, a tank; a valve casingsecured thereto and having a pair of passages formed therein, one beinga fuel delivering` passage and the other a suction passage; a fuel and asuction controlling valve, one for each passage; a venting valve in oneend of the valve casing; a plug slidably mounted in the valve casing andhaving. passages formed therein communicating at one end with theventing valve and at the opposite end with the interior of the tank; aspring actuated dead beat lever connected at one end with the plug; afloat within the tank whereby movement is imparted to the plug andthedead beat lever; a stem on the plug extending downwardly into the tank;an'uppcr and a lower collar formed on the stem, said float being movablebetween the collars and adapt-n ed to engage the sameV to impart asliding movement to the plug inan upward direction when the float risesand in a downward direction when the floatV approaches its lowermostlimit, said upper collar forming a support for the suction and fuelvalve, and serving the function of raising-the same to a closed positionwhen the ioat and plug move upwardly. i y

3. inta device of the character described a tank, a valve casing securedthereto and having a pair of passages formed therein, one being a fueldelivering passage and the other a suction passage, said valve casingalso having a venting opening formed vtherein, a plug. slidably mountedin the valve casing, aV rod extending downwardly therefrom,afloatfsurrounding the rod and having a freeupiand down movement Von therod, a collar adjacent the upper end ofthe rod and a collar adjacent thelower end of the rod between which thel float moves, and which the floatengages to impart movement to the rod and the plug, a pair of valvescarried by the upper collar and adapted to open and close the fueldelivering and the suction passage, and means actuated by movement ofthe rod and plug for opening or closing the venting opening.

li. ln a vdevice of the character described a tank, a valve casingsecured thereto and having a pair of passages formed therein, one beinga fuel delivering passage and the other a suction passage, said casingalso having a venting opening formed therein, a rod vertically movablewith relation to the casing, said rod having an upper and a lowershoulder formed therein, a float freely movable on the rod between theshoulders and adapted to impart vertical movement to the rod either inan upward or a downward direction, a dead beat lever connected with therod and adapted toretain the rod either in a raised or a loweredposition, anda plurality of valves actuated by the rod, said valvesintermittently opening and closing the fuel inlet, the suction and theventing passages.

wiLL'mM n. rmwrrr.

